Feet 'n Inches
Out of the rat-race at last
- Messages
- 545
- Location
- Devon, GB
I had intended to do a review of this machine with photos etc. but after firing it up and seeing the results I decided not to bother. Plenty of images of the machine can be found here.
The last time I used a flux-cored wire-fed welder was over 30 years ago - that particular machine was loaded with hard-facing wire and was pretty effective if you discount the number of times it jammed - but it was quicker than using stick, given the area to be hard-faced. As for MIG machines, at a guess, I would say that perhaps 15% of the footage I've welded over the years was MIG; although I could produce passable welds.
The Parkside was part impulse buy and part 'could be a need for it in the future'. I actually bought it several months ago but left it boxed up until the other day.
Setting up the wire feed was pretty easy and once the rollers had been locked, the wire fed through to the tip with no problem. I dug out a 50 x 6 flat off-cut to practice on, setting the machine to a high setting. First off I tried a few straight runs and once I found the best wire speed, was able to lay down something that resembled a weld. However, the profile was lumpy and it was clear that the wire had a tendency to whip back and forth a bit at the tip so, achieving an even width throughout was difficult. Cleaning off the layer of 'slag' was not easy - I was reminded of removing the slag from cellulose deep-penetration rods. Next up a fillet weld . . . well I tried. The result was a series of blobs that looked like the pickings from a dirty nostril. Give it its due, though, it took a few blows with a two-and-a-half pound hammer to break the two pieces apart, although the profile showed very little fusion to the vertical plate. In all instances, the amount of spatter produced was massive and pretty difficult to remove.
I will persist with the machine and then perhaps I could write something more positive but at the moment . . .
Advantages: Very few other than if I can produce some decent welds.
Fairly light and easy to carry.
It would be useful for outside work and if working with steel thicknesses less than 1.5 mm.
Disadvantages: See above.
Small wire reels are going to last no time at all and if replacements are costly then possibly not worth the while.
Far too much spatter produced.
I'd be interested to see if anyone has had a positive experience of this welder.
The last time I used a flux-cored wire-fed welder was over 30 years ago - that particular machine was loaded with hard-facing wire and was pretty effective if you discount the number of times it jammed - but it was quicker than using stick, given the area to be hard-faced. As for MIG machines, at a guess, I would say that perhaps 15% of the footage I've welded over the years was MIG; although I could produce passable welds.
The Parkside was part impulse buy and part 'could be a need for it in the future'. I actually bought it several months ago but left it boxed up until the other day.
Setting up the wire feed was pretty easy and once the rollers had been locked, the wire fed through to the tip with no problem. I dug out a 50 x 6 flat off-cut to practice on, setting the machine to a high setting. First off I tried a few straight runs and once I found the best wire speed, was able to lay down something that resembled a weld. However, the profile was lumpy and it was clear that the wire had a tendency to whip back and forth a bit at the tip so, achieving an even width throughout was difficult. Cleaning off the layer of 'slag' was not easy - I was reminded of removing the slag from cellulose deep-penetration rods. Next up a fillet weld . . . well I tried. The result was a series of blobs that looked like the pickings from a dirty nostril. Give it its due, though, it took a few blows with a two-and-a-half pound hammer to break the two pieces apart, although the profile showed very little fusion to the vertical plate. In all instances, the amount of spatter produced was massive and pretty difficult to remove.
I will persist with the machine and then perhaps I could write something more positive but at the moment . . .
Advantages: Very few other than if I can produce some decent welds.
Fairly light and easy to carry.
It would be useful for outside work and if working with steel thicknesses less than 1.5 mm.
Disadvantages: See above.
Small wire reels are going to last no time at all and if replacements are costly then possibly not worth the while.
Far too much spatter produced.
I'd be interested to see if anyone has had a positive experience of this welder.
